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Section II – Analysis of Program Activities by Strategic Outcome

This section provides information about PCO’s program activities, including plans for the upcoming year. These five program activities support PCO’s single strategic outcome.

Strategic Outcome

The Privy Council Office, in consultation with other departments and agencies, provides advice to the Prime Minister on the full range of issues and policies (including those relating to social development, the economy, the environment and the machinery of government), maintains inventories of senior personnel and monitors the performance of senior personnel.

PCO staff, as appropriate, coordinate advice across all government departments and agencies, consult with stakeholders and conduct research in order to provide professional, non-partisan advice. They provide a challenge function in order to ensure that policy proposals are developed in a rigorous manner. PCO also ensures that proposals take into account issues related to implementation, communications, parliamentary affairs and federal-provincial-territorial relations.

PCO provides advice on matters related to security and intelligence, Canada-U.S. relations, foreign and defence policy issues, and international assistance. It coordinates advice across the relevant government departments and agencies (including the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Department of National Defence, the Canadian International Development Agency and Public Safety Canada), and also undertakes research.

PCO supports and provides advice on the development, coordination and implementation of the Government’s legislative program and democratic reform agenda to the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, the Minister of State (Democratic Reform), and the Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister of State (Seniors). In addition, administrative support is given to the Minister of State and Chief Government Whip.

PCO also advises and supports the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister for La Francophonie by providing an integrated view of relations with the provinces and territories across the Government’s broad policy agenda. Advice and assistance are provided to develop federal-provincial-territorial strategies, advance broader government-wide priorities and support the Minister’s participation in Cabinet committees and parliamentary activities. PCO staff, as appropriate, consult with stakeholders, conduct research and prepare advice on intergovernmental relations. They provide a challenge function on policy developments that could have an impact on intergovernmental relations. They also provide liaison and advice on relations with the provinces and territories and the renewal of the federation, and they support communications and parliamentary affairs on issues and initiatives with important federal-provincial-territorial dimensions. 

Planning Highlights

In order to achieve the expected results, the Privy Council Office plans to support the Government as it undertakes the following activities:

• Provide effective leadership of the economic agenda.

• Move forward policy measures that will create jobs, provide stimulus in the downturn, and secure Canada’s future prosperity, while protecting the Canadians most impacted by the economic downturn, including through investments in housing, help for families caring for loved ones with disabilities, and the removal of barriers to labour market participation and mobility.

• Ensure the federal government operates more effectively through reform and streamlining of administrative procedures and strengthened management of Crown corporations.

• Strengthen Canada’s sovereignty and place in the world through ensuring the sovereignty of Canada’s Arctic; modernizing Canada’s military; articulating the Government’s national security policy; continuing to cooperate with the United States in defending North America and advancing North American prosperity and security; fulfilling Canada’s responsibilities to and advancing our interests within the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the G8 as well as with allies; and building on Canada’s accomplishments in Afghanistan.

• Strengthen the federation and its specific initiatives to make Canada’s institutions and processes more democratic and more accountable, and promote democratic institutions abroad.

• Develop and implement initiatives aimed at securing our energy future, tackling climate change and preserving Canada’s environment.

• Keep Canadians safe through tackling serious crime, strengthening the justice system and improving protection from hazardous products and unsafe food.

In addition, PCO will:

• identify emerging issues and engage in medium-term strategic thinking in order to inform Cabinet deliberations and provide advice for the Government’s forward-looking agenda;

• support security planning for summits and other major national and international events, including the work of the Coordinator for the 2010 Olympics and G8 Security; and

• enhance the Orders-in-Council Information System to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of decision-making support to the Governor in Council. This work will include continuing the enhancements started in 2008-09 to improve the efficiency of the database system.

The Privy Council Office facilitates integration across the federal community to support implementation of the Government’s agenda by departments and agencies. PCO engages in consultation, provides a challenge function and researches issues.

It helps coordinate and facilitate the operation of Cabinet and Cabinet committees, including by assisting with agenda setting and meeting management and by providing secretarial support, and provides expert advice to the Cabinet and the chairs of Cabinet committees on a full range of issues and policies.

In order to facilitate integration across the federal community and support the Cabinet decision-making process, PCO staff coordinate the management of deputy minister-level meetings and provide expert advice to the Clerk of the Privy Council on a range of policy issues, in consultation with stakeholders.

The effective implementation of the Government’s priorities in Parliament is essential. PCO enables this implementation by providing advice and operational support for the introduction and progression of legislative initiatives, with a particular emphasis on priority bills. 

Planning Highlights

In order to achieve the expected result, the Privy Council Office plans to support the Government by providing advice to Cabinet and supporting its deliberations as it advances the Government’s policy and legislative priorities outlined previously.

In addition, PCO will undertake the following activities:

• Establish the weekly schedule of Cabinet and Committee meetings.

• Manage the security and accountability of all Cabinet documents and meetings.

• Implement a new template for Memoranda to Cabinet with enhanced emphasis on implementation and results.

• Exercise a challenge and coordination function with respect to policy and legislative proposals being brought forward by departments.

• Provide whole-of-government leadership in the development of strategic policy as well as the integration and coordination of the Government’s activities and operations in Afghanistan.

• Manage the work of the deputy minister National Security Committee, which is chaired by the National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister.

PCO provides leadership for Public Service renewal through research, analysis and planning. Staff work closely with those in other departments and agencies as they undertake, or arrange for, the research and thinking needed to ensure that the Public Service can serve the Government and Canadians with excellence over the next few decades.

PCO staff also provide advice and support to the Deputy Minister Committee on Public Service Renewal and the Prime Minister’s Advisory Committee on the Public Service. For the Committee on Public Service Renewal, this support helps members to provide leadership and direction for renewal efforts. For the Prime Minister’s Advisory Committee, this support helps members to understand the challenges facing the Public Service, and to make observations and recommendations to the Prime Minister.

Another key role is to develop and deliver human resources management policies and services aimed at the effective recruitment, selection, retention and management of Governor in-Council appointees, including deputy ministers, chief executive officers of Crown corporations and heads of agencies.

In addition, PCO staff provide advice and support to the deputy minister Committee of Senior Officials (COSO) and its sub-committees. This support helps members to understand and manage the challenges facing the leadership cadre and to develop a culture of high performance to ensure institutions have the capacity, now and in the future, to deliver on the Government’s agenda.

Planning Highlights

In order to achieve the expected result, the Privy Council Office plans to undertake the following activities:

• PCO will continue to implement the key pillars of renewal, as recommended by the Clerk of the Privy Council in the Fifteenth Annual Report to the Prime Minister on the Public Service of Canada. The Clerk’s Sixteenth Annual Report to the Prime Minister on the Public Service of Canada will further develop these themes.

• To ensure that the Public Service reflects non-partisanship, excellence and leadership at all levels, PCO will sponsor the year-long Canada@150 initiative, a leadership development opportunity for 150 federal public servants who are just beginning their careers to learn about and contribute to policy analysis and development. Participants selected from across the Public Service will take part in this initiative until June 2009.

The planned spending and human resources identified for this program activity cover the forecast cost of the following commissions of inquiry:

• Commission of Inquiry into the Investigation of the Bombing of Air India Flight 182 (http://www.majorcomm.ca/).

• Internal Inquiry into the Actions of Canadian Officials in Relation to Abdullah Almalki, Ahmad Abou-Elmaati and Muayyed Nureddin (http://www.iacobucciinquiry.ca/).

• Commission of Inquiry into Certain Allegations Respecting Business and Financial Dealings Between Karlheinz Schreiber and the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney (http://www.oliphantcommission.ca/).

PCO’s role is limited to providing financial and administrative advice, guidance and support to commissions of inquiry from initial start-up to conclusion. Because these entities are independent, our reporting documents do not provide information relating to their mandate, work priorities or performance. This type of information is found on the individual commission websites.

As previously mentioned, the Privy Council Office provides commissions of inquiry with support for internal services. When such an entity is created, PCO initiates arrangements for accommodation, furnishings and equipment to ensure that the work of the commission, task force or inquiry proceeds efficiently. PCO also ensures that ongoing administrative advice and support are provided to each commission to help in the following areas: hiring staff, acquisition services, contracting, financial services, accessing funding, records management, payroll support, posting of transcripts on the Internet, translation, legal services, security and systems support. 

Planning Highlights

In order to achieve the expected result, the Privy Council Office plans to undertake the following activities:

• Provide commissions of inquiry with internal services support.

• Provide arrangements for the implementation of new commissions of inquiry, as necessary.

• Provide general legal support to the Government of Canada with respect to commissions of inquiry.

Planning Highlights

As outlined under Departmental Priority number 4 (Strengthen PCO’s internal management practices), the Privy Council Office plans to undertake the following activities:

• Strengthen management of internal security by enhancing PCO’s planning and its readiness posture in the areas of emergency management and occupational health and safety.   

• Continue to focus on providing objective and independent value-added assurance services, including:
  
  
  • delivering on audit projects outlined in the approved Annual Audit Plan; and
  • developing a strategically focused risk-based Evaluation Plan that is consistent with departmental and government-wide evaluation priorities. PCO will also establish a new evaluation committee.

• Ensure the integration of human resources and business plans and continue to implement the 2007-10 Strategic Human Resources Plan and the Integrated Business and Human Resources plans, as well as refine the planning processes for future years.

• Improve reporting to Parliament by implementing the second year of a multi-year performance measurement strategy.

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